Introduction

Photography has become an integral element of the society in the current generation. The emergence of social media platforms for sharing photographs such as Instagram and Pinterest have increased the propensity of people taking photographs. People take photographs for varied reasons.  Among them is gaining the opportunity to share and communicate, helps to showcase what is important to people and photographs also help people to have memories among other reasons.¹ Renee Cox is among the most controversial African-American artists of the current generation. She uses photography to question race relations, the state of politics, the role of women, the female body and feminism.³ To achieve this, Renee Cox turns stereotypical representations on their head. This paper is going to examine her biography, explore some of her photographs and analyze her photography style.

Biography

Renee Cox was born in Jamaica in 1960. When she was still a baby her family relocated to Queens, New York. The family later settled in Scarsdale where Cox spent her adolescence. Cox commenced and completed her undergraduate studies at Syracuse University. Here, she was undertaking a film major.² After graduation, Cox set her eyes on photography, and this is where she devoted most of her time. She concentrated on shooting fashion in Paris. Cox was initially interested in becoming a filmmaker, but the baby boomer reaction prompted her to indulge in photography due to the immediate gratification, and it was less laborious compared to filmmaking. In 1992, Renee Cox completed her Fine Arts Masters in New York from the School of Visual Arts.³ She also studied photography in the same school.

Description of three Photographs

1.Yo Mama’s Last Supper, 1999

This photograph is a remake of Leonardo’s da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”. The photograph features Renee Cox posing nude as Jesus with her arms outstretched. She is surrounded by the twelve disciples who are all back, apart from Judas who is white.   They are on a table just like how the last supper is usually demonstrated with lots of food in their presence. It is only Renee Cox that is naked; the disciples are fully clothed. Cox choose to take the picture naked since she believed that God created humans in his own image, and wanted to showcase this aspect since there is no picture out there that normally portrays Jesus as a brown woman. Cox asserts that women can also be Christ since they are the givers of life.⁴ Judas is depicted as being White since Cox wants to show that Blacks are not entangled in wrong doings as they are usually portrayed; even Whites can find themselves here. Compared to da Vinci’s painting, the colors are different. Cox concentrated on using a darker background, while da Vinci used one that is brighter. With this work, Cox is trying to say that African-Americans are heavily involved with religious activities and beliefs and as a result they should be represented in such biblical imagery.

2. Liberation of Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben, 1998

In this photograph, Renee Cox appears as a superhero that is named Raje. She is portrayed rescuing the newly empowered Aunt Jemima from her maple syrup label and Uncle Ben from his box of rice. She has worn a costume resembling the Jamaican flag, and she is portrayed to be in a moving forward posture. She is in the middle of Uncle Ben and Aunt Jemima, and she has then by her hands. The use of appropriated imagery in this photograph works is showcasing the visual symbolism that Cox intends to pass across. This piece was created to show people that they can be liberated from things that have been subjected upon them like consumption of products that are touted to be healthy for consumptions on advertisements, but there is always a dark side that is no illuminated. The clothing used works to show aspects of a superhero. This works to alter the stereotypical endeavors of presenting superheroes as being white and not black on most occasions.

3. Yo Mama, ca 1995

In this photograph, Renee Cox has depicted herself nude. She is wearing nothing but only high heels while wielding her two-year-old son as a weapon. She holds the son around her genital region.  Cox is nude in this photograph with the objective of showcasing feminism. The choice to wear high heels was as a result of the appeal that they bring; hyper visibility. Cox portrays a stern face while the son’s face shows quite the opposite. This contrast indicates the difficulties that Cox has have to undergo as a Black woman, but her son is still pure as he is yet to be integrated into the reality of the society. Her body is dissimilar to racial stereotypes that normally portray African-Americans as being rugged. The black background works in showing the dull mood that Cox is experiencing.

Analysis of Renee Cox’s Style

Since the inception of her photography career, Renee Cox’s style has focused on showcasing a deep concern for social issues in the society. This is a style she has embraced up to the current date. Cox’s main concern is the empowerment of women and the deconstruction of stereotypes.⁴  She believes that the media images of women are usually distorted and are imprisoned by these unrealistic representations of their bodies. Cox argues that this distortion devalues all women and crosses all ethnic lines. She obtains her inspiration from the experiences she has had in life, and she uses herself as the conduit of her photographs since she believes that working with ‘self’ creates an honest representation of being.³ Cox asserts that slavery stripped black women and men their identity and dignity and through photography she is trying to restore the African-American psyche.

Cox started her career by embracing this style, and she has maintained a similar path even with her current photographs. She has worked in replicating popular work of arts that feature Whites and replacing them with Black figures. The impact this approach has is that the photographs will create a stir since the original arts had some popularity. She has shown the strength of women by portraying them in aspects that are not always illuminated by the media.⁴ A good example is the “Yo mama’s last supper” photograph where Cox portrays herself as Jesus. Different media contents usually portray Jesus as being male, and therefore, Cox intended to challenge such beliefs. This is something that usually creates controversy among varied people. An example of a controversy is the conflict that emerged with Mayor Rudy Giuliani upon the exhibition of “Yo mama’s Last Supper” exhibition in New York.  Renee Cox is of continuing interest and relevance given the nature of photographs that she creates. The aspects of inequality in the society are yet to be phased out. On most occasions, it is usually viewed in the lines of gender and racism. In an attempt of trying to get rid of the inequality aspect, Cox’s photographs could work as an inspiration by showing that everyone in the society can attain an equal status in the society compared to other individuals.¹

Conclusion

People indulge in photography for varied reasons. Renee Cox takes photography as a way of showcasing the issues being endured in the society. Through her photographs, she tries to deconstruct various stereotypes and enhance women empowerment at the same time. These are aspects that ought to be embraced positively due to the positive impact that is likely to emanate. However, this has not been entirely the case. Over the years, Cox has been considered to being controversial due to her nude photographs and replication of past art works. This is a classic example of how different people would view a given photograph and end up making different conclusions. There are people that view her work as being positive while there are others that think her photographs are obscene.  That is why people use photographs for varying reasons.

References

1. Andrea L. Black bodies in evidence: maternal visibility in Renée Cox’s family portraits; 2000.

2.      Noel S.How Renee Cox and Sonia BoycePull Ethnographic Art Apart.Putting on a Bold Face.2014;28(2):163-176.

3. Sackler E. Brooklyn Museum: Renee Cox. Brooklynmuseumorg. 2017. Available at: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/feminist_art_base/renee-cox. Accessed April 23, 2017.
4. Springer K. Policing black women’s sexual expression: the cases of Sarah Jones and Renee Cox. Genders. 2011;54.

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